Matthew Tully: House Dems need to overcome dysfunction

Nov. 10, 2012

Newly elected House Minority Leader Scott Pelath, D-Michigan City, and Minority Floor Leader Linda Lawson, D-Hammond, said Thursday that their caucus would have a new atittude and new energy when lawmakers returned to the Statehouse for their 2013 session. / Photo by Lesley Weidenbener, TheStatehouseFile.com

Written by

Rep. Scott Pelath, D-Michigan City, makes an impassioned plea to colleagues to vote no on the so-called "right to work" bill for his grandfather and father during discussion of the bill. He was the last representative to speak before Indiana Speaker of the House Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis, surprised Democrats by quickly calling for vote during discussion on the House floor on Jan. 25, 2012. Pelath said one of the proudest moments of his life was seeing his father on a picket line. The House passed the bill 54-44, with five Republicans joining Democrats voting "No." / (Charlie Nye / The Star)

More

ADVERTISEMENT

Statehouse Republicans have a rare chance in the next two years to shape and enact a vision for Indiana without partisan opposition. Their Democratic counterparts, meanwhile, have the opportunity to undertake rebuilding a caucus that has drifted and stalled in recent years.

For the sake of Indiana, let's hope Republicans make the right moves. For the sake of a strong two-party system, let's hope Democrats do, too.

The numbers coming out of Tuesday's elections were stunning -- and more lopsided than Indiana has seen in nearly half a century. Senate Democrats remain in the wilderness, and now House Democrats have joined them by claiming only 31 of that chamber's 100 seats. The most glaring impact of that is Republicans now have a quorum-proof majority, meaning they have enough members to conduct business even if Democrats, say, flee to Illinois for a few weeks.

So can House Democrats rebuild? After years of dysfunction, can the caucus return to being a serious player in the legislature's junior body?

It won't be easy, but there is a path forward for the party that, believe it or not, controlled the House as recently as 2010. And the benefit of being so far down is that Democrats likely have hit bottom. It will be more of a challenge for Republicans to defend 69 seats in future elections -- even in a state they gerrymandered quite effectively last year -- than for Democrats to pick up a few seats.

What does the party need to do? Well, other than hoping Republicans turn off voters by overreaching, it comes down to basics.

First, former Democratic State Rep. Bob Kuzman said, should be a push to expand the party beyond its urban core. Of the 31 House Democrats who won last week, 16 are from either Marion or Lake counties. The party must start competing in the suburbs, where the population is growing. This won't be an easy chore, but just as Republicans must do more to reach out to minority voters, House Democrats must start to compete for the hearts and minds of suburban voters. A start would be to invest resources to create strong party organizations in places such as Fishers.

"We have to provide voters with a choice in the suburbs," Kuzman said. "The alternative could be a moderate Democrat who is worried about jobs and education and not focused on social issues. Let Republicans do the social issues, and Democrats can focus on their core issues. That can be our message."

It all ties into the need for House Democrats to craft a message and a vision. It's hard to remember a time when the caucus served as more than the party of no. During Gov. Mitch Daniels' two terms, former Democratic leader Pat Bauer rarely offered fully developed alternatives to the governor's proposals.

That looks likely to change under new Democratic leader Scott Pelath, Michigan City, a more reasonable next-generation politician who seems interested in building both the Democratic brand and a less top-down caucus. State Party Chairman Dan Parker said the vision cast from the House in the coming years should send a message to voters around the state: that it is the moderate party. For instance, on education, Democrats could take the lead in arguing for a funding system that sends more money to classrooms and spends less on district organizations.

U.S. Sen.-elect Joe Donnelly, Parker added, "has provided the roadmap for how Democrats in Indiana can be successful. It must always be a party that seeks to reach out to independents and moderate Republicans to build a coalition."

Moreover, Democrats must do the hard work of diversifying their fundraising base, which now is dominated by unions and certain business interests and individuals in Lake and Marion counties. Of course, as former State Party Chairman Kip Tew said last week, saying the party needs to diversify is the easy part; doing so is the hard part.

"It reminds me of the great Steve Martin line about how to become a millionaire," he said. "First thing, get a million dollars."

Nonetheless, the party can't continue to be a wholly owned subsidiary of the unions, as that has repeatedly narrowed its legislative efforts in recent years and led to the disastrous 2011 walkout that likely cost it several House seats this year.

The party did advance in one area this year, as it recruited a series of high-caliber Statehouse candidates in Marion County, including Christina Hale, who defeated longtime Republican incumbent Cindy Noe. One of the party's top goals, many say, should be the development of similar talent for local and state races in coming years. To do so, the House caucus must rid itself of its past dysfunction and accept the need to hand leadership to a younger generation.

Additionally, Democrats must stop ostracizing those who occasionally stray from the party line. Hale said she was impressed with Pelath's promise to build a party of diverse ideas generated by rank-and-file lawmakers.

"Clearly there's a lot of fatigue with controversy and drama," she said of the Bauer years. "It's time to set that aside and move forward."

Statehouse Democrats are down. The question is, can they start to pick themselves up?